During the past year, the youth group members of my congregation set a very ambitious goal for themselves. They were going to design and construct a meaningful memorial to the 1.5 million Jewish children who were murdered by the Nazis. They planned to make it a permanent exhibit at the Temple and they were going to do it out of crayons. While the plan called for 1.35 million of those crayons to be donated to area schools and institutions, 150,000 of the crayons were going to be retained in a permanent display. Youth group members wanted the memorial to be a teaching tool. They believed that one of the most difficult facts arising from the Holocaust was the sheer magnitude of the numbers involved. If young people could see what 1.5 million of anything looked like, they might gain an appreciation of the magnitude of young lives lost. In addition, the memorial was going to send an important message about personal responsibility.

The adult advisers to the youth group trace the idea for the memorial to a visit to a mall in Peoria. At the Shoppes at Grand Prairie mall they encountered a memorial display of 11 million buttons, representing all of those who perished in the death camps, both Jewish and non-Jewish prisoners. The display had a very deep impact on the Temple Israel youth group members. They sought to create a smaller scale memorial which would, nevertheless, send an equally important message as stated eloquently by Dr. Martin Luther king, Jr., “Our lives begin to end the day we become silent about things that matter.” They chose crayons to represent the lives of children, exterminated for no crime other than the fact that they were Jewish.

At a low key but powerful dedication service, which took place on Saturday evening, May 3, 2008, the memorial was formally opened. The service did not focus on the Nazi Holocaust alone. In fact, the strongest message of the service was the understanding of the youth group members that murderous hatred for persons who are different, still persists. Each crayon on display was intended to represent 10 young lives cut off. Those who worked on assembling the display were very much aware of what it takes to sort and stack 150,000 crayons. It took more than 50 man/hours to assemble the display. It took a year to collect the 1.5 millions crayons.

Schools and other institutions serving children may contact the youth group for free crayons. Email advisors@tifty.org. Along with the crayons the recipients will receive coloring books which promote tolerance and diversity. The display is in the hallway of the religious school at Temple Israel. To visit, contact ti-stl.org. It is a great thing when young people persist in finding ways to teach themselves and others about confronting injustice. It is not just another Holocaust memorial. It is a very graphic reminder of what happens when people choose to look the other way.